how's it goin' yall? i used to skate back when i was like 14-16 but i was never too serious about it and now that i'm a bit older and have the means to keep up with the sport, i'm wanting to pick it up again. also the fact that i'm majoring in radio/tv/film at the moment has heavily influenced my decision to pick it back up, i want to make skate films, and i need to be able to at least follow ppl but for the most part i'm just trying to get back to that feeling that skating gave me, basically a freedom above normal freedom if that makes sense. ANYWAY, i'm thinking about this setup and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions/tips/review about products i've chosen or ANYTHING you think would be useful to me, i'd like to hear it. appreciate the read and sorry i babbled for so long psh--here's the setup:

that's pretty much it, i've got my mind made up on grip tape and everything else, i would just like some feedback on these items if anyone cares to give some. ALSO, i am about 5'11 155lbs, i used to skate wider decks but i found they were harder to do any flip tricks on (or maybe i just straight blew)--but i felt like a skinnier deck always felt better to me when i would ride a friends, that's why i chose 7.5 for this one. thanks to anyone who reads, and appreciate it. holla

Go for it...I encourage anyone of any age to skate and keep on skating until they can't skate any more.

As far as your set up goes, I tend to agree with bailgun...The type/size deck you get is really up to you, but actually going to a local shop will help you make your decision. You can see what it looks like and even stand on it so you know how it feels under your feet. I'm only 5'8" and I prefer an 8" deck, but everyone's different.

I only ride Indy's but that's my personal preference (I've always ridden them.) Wheels, same thing. I like Spitfires, but everyone's different. Bearings...I would say if you're going to go with Reds, spend a few extra dollars and get the Super Reds; They're higher quality and they are faster than the regulars, (If you have money, which I don't, spring for the Swiss or ceramics...Very high quality.)

my friend just came over with this deck(7.5) and a friends(8.0) and i tried both of them and it felt like when i was on the 8, i had more control on ollies, but the deck was also so much heavier! i feel like with the 7.5 i would have more control with flips(since it's lighter) or does this not make sense? to me it felt like when i rode the 8 then got on the 7.5 it was like swinging a donut on a bat then taking it off. i'm honestly looking for some more opinions so if anyone reading this has a second plz just lemme know what you think. is a 7.5 deck going to break easier since it's smaller than an 8 or is it just the "board control" that is being addressed by this change. thanks yall.

also, my local skate shop is zumiez and their decks blow, so anymore feedback for ccs decks?

i dunno why everyone hates on ccs, lol. my local "shop" is zumiez, overpriced BULLSHIT. CCS is great for prices and selection and they've always been a legit store front, i've been buying from them for years. there's a reason why they're still around.

what the hell tho, an 8!? for real!? that shit is like HUGE, i don't want to skate vert i am just trying to get back into the swing of things and get the basics down, is it going to easier on a bigger or smaller deck? what about a 7.75 instead?

I've never used CCS so I don't know too much about them. If you don't have a local shop other than Zumiez and you don't want to go there, order a deck that you like from wherever you want to...

You wanted some opinions and you got them...Some people prefer bigger boards, and some prefer smaller ones. You said you felt good on a 7.5", but felt like you had a better ollie on an 8"...

The major consensus here seems to be that the 7.5 is more of a kid's board, but you feel that the 8 might be too big...Maybe the answer is a 7.75/7.8?

One thing to consider when deciding on the width of your deck is the size of your feet...What size shoes do you wear? I only wear a size nine and I swear by my 8" deck (and I skate mostly street, plenty of flip tricks included). I think that the whole "heavy" thing was all in your head or your friend just had a heavy board (wheels/trucks/etc..) We're only talking about 1/2" in width and a tiny bit of length. That's not enough wood to make a significant difference in weight.

for sure for sure. i really appreciate all the answers i've got so far. i think im either going to go with an 8/7.75. prolly the 8 first so i can get a real solid ollie down and yeah come to think of it the dude had independents on his deck and the other had something else so it was probably the trucks.

what about tensor vs krux for trucks?

im also thinking about the ricta supercrystal wheels, they're expensive but does anyone know if they're worth it? i mean it's Ricta but could i just get some Bones 100s and still be straight?

I think you are stressing about the entirely wrong aspect of your setup. Clearly the only thing you are going to be spending your time on is blowing dudes so it would likely behoove you to invest in some solid knee pads.

If you want to progress quickly you need to 1. Skate a lot2. Not get injured.3. Ride a lot of shapes and keep track of WHY you like what you like. 4. Ignore other peoples input and really go with what works for you regardless of fashion.

In a nutshell, width adds stability for street/flips while wheelbase adds stability for tranny and speed. Usually they increase together. Wheelbase will really affect your ride overall. Tail length and shape will really affect your ollies. So will the amount of tail and nose kick. Companies like flip that have steep kicks will feel really different than something flatter like creature even with the same width and wheelbase and same parent company. Depth of concave is important too. Skate companies rarely list this information and skaters are willfully ignorant of it as well. If you want to get better faster then keep track and think and feel with your feet.

i know i like to ride loose and i was debating between krux and tensor lol so both of those are out now, i suppose. i had original independents back in the day and i remember they were heavy as balls, but i did see that they are making lighter ones now, so i could check them out as well.

If you liked old indys try aces. Tershay worked at Indy and left to create Ace based on the old indy stage 2 and stage 3. Not as solid as indys but lighter and turn deeper and plenty strong enough. I really wanted to stay with Indy but just prefer the Ace 44s so I based my board choices around that truck really. Prefer it to the stage 10 Indy although stage 10s are good trucks too.